The Truth About the Economy and the Believer's Duty

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Contact your local retailer for inventory information which was to improve management report customer goal with the podcast was. Hope you try to find your way in this difficult world. Your chosen treatment would podcast was starting just seconds to enjoy sure, but most of all, thank you for listening and choosing The Truth Podcast Network. This is the Truth Network welcome everyone to another big week of truth talk. I'm Stu Epperson big news this week is huge bill passed recently. It's called the inflation reduction act. We all know that's not true what you do when your government is amoral, not about abortion, which they have not about all kinds of other horrible things, but fiscally immoral.

That means you borrow more than you can pay back. That means you going to debt and you put oppressive debt on your citizens. That's what's happening with this bill but don't take my word for. We sat down with a amazing economic mind. A man who loves Jesus, who is the head, the Dean of the school of business at liberty University. I was able to sit in his office this week and talk to him about the 87,000 new IRS agents that are covered after you there, after small churches because the government just doesn't have enough of our money so they have passed a bill worth billions to hire more IRS agents. What about that she would be concerned about the economic direction our country is going. You're in for a treat. Fasten your seatbelt and you're going to hear from Dr. David Bratt, God bless you and now this week's episode of truth talk. We jump in dive deep into the economics and what God says about money here we go 7000 new IRS agents coming your way.

Is this an answer to prayer or is this the end of the world. Well, I'm with a guy who is the head of one of most amazing business departments in the world. Liberty University Dr. Dave Bratt, Congressman, all kinds of accolades. I did take the whole show to go through all your accolades, Dr. Brett, but tell us your reaction to this inflation in Illinois as a Christian talk show to talk. We pay taxes. This is the Lord's money in it.

We are supposed to be good stewards of that of our vote of our taxes. So what are the implications of this so-called inflation reduction bill that Congress just passed yeah well it's a long answer. It's the steady march of the left and I'm not talking liberals I like liberals. Liberals root word liberty there fine. We debate the size and scope of government but this is the left. The gold Marxists was to take over the means of production right not only the state but all businesses to own capital so they know they can't do that and so they take the yacht long road through the institutions they started K to 12 that completely taken over higher Ed and all that. I'll get to how you see this people make these claims but then they don't back it up. And so this 80,000 IRS agents. I mean if you don't clearly see that as the growth of the administrative state you got blinders on right and that you know St. Paul had a right that you know some folks you got a break to have eyes to see and so part of its related maybe to our tradition that way that some people can see God and God's nature unfolding right in front of our eyes. Others can't see it but yes I did, I did a segment this morning on the Federal Reserve right so a lot of you may not have followed this right, but the Fed and in." This is John Taylor at Stanford right this is not Dave Bratt.

He's the guy that followed Milton Friedman who won the Nobel prize in monetary economics, some only quote the best guys here, the Federal Reserve caused to the 0708 financial crisis. The printed too much money in 0405 and go somewhere when real estate that made up all sorts of crazy financial instruments. Go watch the big short skip the racy parts, but that'll give you a good overview so they destroyed our grandparents are retirement accounts, stock market went down 50% people panic sold out lost everything so okay, people make mistakes okay good is so you wouldn't want to repeat that. But guess what folks were right in the middle of the exact same thing the Fed kept the federal funds rate, the interest rate at 00% for a decade then that didn't work and just remind people of the basics of banking rights of the federal reserve its banking so you Christians out there 50 years ago – farmer your farmer you go to the bank and you asked for a loan.

Your banker lives in your neighborhood and they know who you are and they say hey, tell me about your business plan and you how many acres you got what you doing Speiser strategy if it makes sense to get a loan and you probably go to church together to so there's trust involved in the market and the guy gives you loan and the bank loans it out and that's how you used to create money. It involved business activity will guess what happens now the federal funds rate zero for 10 years. The feds out of tricks in its tracks. Creighton show a sugar high and fake money for 10 years so then they start doing the artificial a creation of money when they don't even make loans and go through business sector anymore. The Federal Reserve just buys assets from the big 20 bags buys much riskier assets puts the money out and just hopes it sticks like spaghetti to the wall on something. There is no free market there's no good business wisdom going on there.

There's none of that.

Now the final coup d'état.

If it happens, I don't think it will happen is tied to that right there and that is called the modern monetary theory that is AOC on the left and there there wishes to have the federal government and fiscal policy take over monetary policy so modern monetary theory. What a basic just print as much money as you want doesn't matter Fed funds rate that the Fed interest rate target is about two or 3% for translation. The government runs our business covers a lot smarter with the government run liberty University.

How long will that work.

Let the government start running your local businesses and how long will it take for the whole deal to go Caputi back Cato what journal there. The libertarian guys are very good on money. I don't agree with him on everything but that's the bottom line and it ended that paper.

I think it's in volume 39 on the Fed go look it up. They have sent last section can bottom line, if you take that over all business activity goes way between private free individuals and the Fed guys the guides the entire macro structure of the economy. They do all the regulatory burden we've already given away the healthcare sector to the feds. We gave away energy sector to the feds. We given away the education sector to the feds and this is the final coup de grace so I open the thing up with Marxism and prove it. Dave and I said the Marxist. I knew they could take over the means of production well if modern monetary theory takes place. The Marxists have just taken over the means of production for all practical matters, because they can monetize it and they can regulate it. And they have control over the entire federal fiscal policy as well as monetary, that will take some doing weren't were not there yet, but I'm just telling folks. If that doesn't motivate you to take some action to get your country back folks in the church have gotten away passive well. Jesus wasn't involved in politics while afraid to tell you he was because there's a thing called the Trinity in Jesus and the Father and Holy Spirit are one and anything the father did political in the Old Testament. Jesus did I hate to remind folks of just Orthodox theology work in this world were were were not of the world, but we have a vote in winter when 50% of Christians are even voting it and that's a stewardship it's like if I said you're not tithing. Let's assume the Bible commands will God says we are in were not in it in a communist country were not enrolled in the New Testament country like Rome were we have a vote. You Christians don't vote or they they don't vote. True values, and then they get confused about that. So Dr. Brett me this is all someone said no socialism has is conquered America without the firing of one bullet and now it's going into our churches.

All this equity quality. In it we got communist China buying chunks of farmland in America and so what what we do to wake up how to what we do need to get back in again were not putting our eggs in the kingdom.

The kingdom is the king of God.

But as citizens on this earth, how are we to be good stewards and how are we to come to wake up. Well you do what Jesus said our father in heaven.

I'll be thy name. Thy kingdom come on earth focus on that God is sovereign over every sphere of life. So in your calling in your occupation in your bouquet. If you're not serving God in your Christian will then you're way off base. I if you go to church for an hour and your vocation of what you do. All during the week all day with you in your work and your family. Heaven is named God it sorry did tell you, but you're missing the boat right and so this isn't just about a vote or you know taken your Bible time in the morning I met you got to organize yourself and then use your brain, which God gave you the central act in the Old Testament, by the way is called the Exodus. It's a political event. I don't want to over exaggerate about three Kings the way that the man entered God's own heart is David. He wrote all the Psalms. All the kings and most of them were bad, and God. If you turn your back on God, God's right there but you turned your back on God, will this country looks like it's turning its back on God, God's right here, God's everywhere and always, but were turning our back on God and work paying the consequences. So you know I will have it was Martin Luther said God judges the nation by giving them wicked rulers which is what we have right now and they are all open socialist communist Marxist.

They love those philosophies but capitalism which you champion here at liberty University. Dr. David Wright or the Dean of the school of business interest in illustrious school. You have been on his gear was in this loan away, but capitalism. There's really a intercourse or scrub capitalist is corrupt everything but it does come out of the Judeo-Christian ethic. Does it not in terms of God created us with freedom to do in to make as much of course. As believers we want to be successful on and glorify him and he's the reason for our success.

You're listening to the Truth Network and TruthNetwork.com just in order to sit down with Dr. David Brett who is the Dean of the school of business at liberty University. Dr. Brett were looking at economic class everywhere like a supply chain. We want to my Christian radio partners just told me that mayonnaise is a 400 process is somewhat like that course were trying to he support businesses support local business, but as believers in this world you have these Christians the slogan of the school here is to make Bill champions for Christ there's other great godly Christian schools in America that are still fixing Christian school should really truly are not just Christian in name only deliveries one of those we just are so excited when our kids when parents make the sacrifices interacted to a Christian college life with a Christian worldview in your turn to turn that out. What is your goal, so I walked to this business department here.

What is your goal with economics, mathematics, calculus, banking, marketing euro NDA level stuff here what what your agenda while the agenda is God's agenda and the only person that knows their own skill set in their own relationship to God is that student so our job is to mentor them and guide them and lead them in the good book, so they understand the word of God and then attach that to their passions and their calling, but they have to identify that calling right week. We work with them.

We guide them in that and then you know and then on top of that the faith part, we identify the skill sets that are gonna meet the market right now right write IT right now is in huge red the big five firms in the US are worth more than all European firms combined and so were we guide our kids to they need to be in that world right now. That world is a little messed up Wright's Google and Twitter and Facebook and all this stuff in and so you know, put Christians to work in those sectors is a big deal right now the mission field. A great opportunity for them to make an impact right know absolutely and and they do and right now it's very interesting the firms are coming to liberty now because our our students don't have a sense of entitlement.

They're not arrogant their humble they want to work I try finding that out in the modern American workforce.

So the value of being a Christian being faithful and having a good conscience set before God.

Any good ethical system is actually a value in the market right now that's new because the contrast between our students and the rest world right now is great in their sticking out like sore thumbs and so yet work liberty were very proud of that and before you asked me about capitalism and all that now is that consistent with biblical principles and that we always get it backwards allotted Christians want to focus on the a lot of people judge us like we think were better than others. The unique thing about Christianity and conservatism versus liberalism is our view of human nature. We realize were fallen were all sinful before God's on that faith level you repent and then under real world practical uniform and how you set up institutions. You do what James Madison did in the Constitution and you do it.

Adam Smith didn't economics you separate power every single which way you can't. You want the smallest entities possible competing against each other. So in the political level. We separated the federal from the state and local is separated the federal three ways the judicial and the Congressional executive you separate all it in economics, Adam Smith, of the same thing. James Madison you separate you keep the small snow monopolies.

The ideal is teeny small firms thousands him duking it out get the lowest price.

The best quality.

Most innovation and what are we done to ruin this country. It's a celebration of the big now it's big healthcare, big airlines, big oil, big automobile big everything big. The law big media big everything right so we've totally mocked it up like not following God's principles, not the founders were geniuses and they were for the most part all Christian right.

The modern world does not want you to know that. But if you go read their letters and just look at the evidence that sit in there. It's just obvious and so we need to get back that to those founding principles because they were Christian principles and and we were talking about war and tougher side like in all that before two and is some of the kids easily say that you know would you would you fight Hitler if you knew what is about do what is already done and allowed us to know Jesus wouldn't do that what you tell that to the Revolutionary war heroes that were led out a note for the most part, but by clergy. The clergy led the troops for freedom of four God-given rights to embed religion and freedom so that we can have the faith to believe and so you were upside down right now we are right the ship you have these preacher pastors literally fill wood would hang up there they would preach the word and walked to the back of the church hang up there pastor pastoral cloak put on their trenchcoat grabbed their muskets and their hat and go out the door to fight the British know Dr. David Brett let me do something. This is going to be a little grim but I want you to talk to so many kids. Kids went to school. My daughter kids that no group Christian school, Christian parents, but there like all in on socialism, they're all in on the left, thinking that there be a nice set it's it's almost like motherly love gone bad, right leg, but thinking that will. This is fairness. We need to give everyone equal but will you tell them how that works out.

Give him a little history lesson.

I think we have a couple countries like Venezuela, Albania, Romania, Cuba. Can you tell them what the future holds for the exact direction that our current leadership in our country wants to take us down that road of Marxism and socialism because you've talked to African leaders who've lost their countries you talk to these guys, communist people who should be dead who've been in prison because simply they spoke up against socialism, which seems like it's so nice because it will everyone's going to be the same right why.

And that's right it's always the promise. The promise always sounds too good to be true in the real world as you mature you learn that that promise is too good to be true because what is the basic promise that the Socialists and the comments make is that in this is straight from Karl Marx right founder, just ignore human rights for now for March.

There is no God, there are no human rights. That means that there's no civil rights for African Americans is no women's rights just ignore all that for now because we can have a revolution of the masses in working to take over the capitalist. The bad guys were in a takeover power from them and then just trust us when you put us in power were going to be good and that right there is the bet you're making and in the history of nations.

It doesn't matter where or when you can never show me when one of those regimes produce good human beings that cared for the poorest of the poor and if you want the evidence on who's taken care of the poorest of the poor who finds Africa the most who funds the poorest of the poor. All of the health the all of the United Nations initiatives all the World Bank and IMF initiatives. The leader of the pack is the United States by far. We give five times more than any other country to the poor and people say well why is the USO greedy we give more than any other country we've defended every other country where the wants to beat Hitler and Italy in the war right we produced a world after World War II called the Bretton Woods liberal order and we set up freedom for all countries and we paid for and so the young people just have not been educated on the basic facts on how great this country is and what has done for the whole world and my favorite little economic lesson always was. When I teach in economics.

The I'd say let me see if you get the logic of this. When they left, is always very well that big pharmaceutical should give all their incredible drugs they prayed they should give away free to the poor should be selling for a high price as a that's a cool sentence kinda sounds Christian like promise socialism and I see the kids that what's the trick what's the logical missing in their innate I'd wait for a while they wouldn't come up with it.

I say why are they asking the US because were the only ones that made and produced all the life-saving drugs and pharmaceuticals. Because of the free market system.

It's that system of innovation which produced all the life-saving drugs. No other system did that and so it's nice you want to give it all way for freight. We do with as I just said we find more than the rest of 5 to 10 countries combined. And so it's reality versus a dream and all the empirical evidence is on the side of free markets, along with the Judeo-Christian ethic.

If you lose the Judeo-Christian religion.

The whole thing falls apart while that right there is a heartbeat of it all know Dr. Brett which just so interesting you say that because we have a whole university system not liberty University. But all the secular schools were paying thousands of dollars to center kids to who are teaching our kids that everything about America's evil communism is great margin is great. The T-shirt is basically that what makes America be able to afford to be five times more generous than any other country, the world is horrible teach our kids that we have a meeting of its teaching our kids that that we need to be like Venezuela fourth wealthiest country in the world 25 years ago now 96% of Venezuelans aren't in abject poverty.

We have a government that fires 11,000+ workers to have our own oils will have to buy oil from thugs and killers and terrorists they fire 11,000 of our own workers interpreted it with jobs and the higher 87,000 IRS ages to come. After everyone listing you better be lawyered up so it's an upside down world and I want you to offer some hope we get to take a quick break will come back with Dr. David Brett, the Dean school of business. Just a couple more minutes and I would ask you about your testimony how you came the Lord was going to see that we complete Dennis K. They are more true thought after this, hang on, were coming up. You're listening to the Truth Network and TruthNetwork.com can you be a Christian and an attorney can you be a Christian and a capitalist can you be a successful business person and be a Christian and here's a big whopper for you. Can you be a Christian and a politician. I'm happy to sit with a man whose conduct all those things that David Brett, you're literally raising your hand guilty as charged. Are you yeah well it's I it's not me.

Luther and Calvin and everybody. Jesus was the king of kings without Jesus, and it God is is the sovereign, politically. They are the creator of the economic systems that have inherited the earth right in the ones that work, work, and the ones that don't don't follow godly principles so it's not me and my being a worker, a Jesus was a carpenter first right and so yes to all the above I like Abraham Kuyper has a famous phrase he says you show me every inch square inch of this world there is not one square inch of this entire universe, and of this world of politics, economics, media, everything were Jesus Christ does not say it is mine right. Well that is the sovereignty of God over every square inch of everything we do.

There is no god of the gaps. There's no where God is missing and it's a Sunday morning religion it. God is sovereign over everything we do everywhere well and just like you may work for an unbeliever. Just like you did me stop working just like you may vote for Emily remained effectively, both candidates and most races are to unbeliever summer vulgar summer pagan is always the better of two evils because there will be older all you that you don't even of Billy Graham's running your find some wrong with him, for Pete's sake, but Dr. David Brett want to hear a little bit about how you came to the Lord you're the Dean of business here at liberty University Patel talked about how did you come to faith in Christ and kinda take us on your journey briefly to where you sit today. Yeah well for me. It was somewhat of an intellectual during the whole way my dad paid us 10 bucks to read books growing up to get our first bikes and to do whatever we did and they were usually religious books. He went to seminary after he retired to Mrs. calling the doctor and my mom similarly grew up in the face.

I was blessed with a Christian family, and so we went to church and is a Presbyterian Church or Methodist Church or whatever grown-up Minnesota was more Lutherans and all them people there but roughly the Sammy Bible believing Chris and I when I was a kid I'd I'd be in there or not. I thought the preacher was staring at me. I mean when your kid, that's what you think right angle.

How does he know I did that right. But when sin, and so the preacher convicts you of sin and then that that's thing that is the gospel right it your convicted of sin than in your like how does this work well is only one way to send that I've been getting up in age now, and I I've studied all the world religions all the philosophical systems in the world that I could get my hands on and I haven't found any other solution to the problem of sin other than Jesus. And so I grew up with that and I studied all competitors along the way and I never found anything even in the ballpark and I still listen to the preacher and the preacher still gets me that nothing's changed right were still simple that I think that's the biggest problem in the church as we forget that we are all still sinners your justified human stamped on the head here saved but were all still working out sanctification and if anybody doesn't think there's any politics in the church to me you've never worked in a church I'd went to seminary work in church for a while. Principal I'm human nature is what it is right. People are self-centered, we don't wake up every day. Reflecting on God how to serve other people will think about ourselves first all day and you can give out you know secular writers who point that out just as well but they don't have a solution and so you know my history's been a just a long continuous journey trying to grow in the faith that liberty home I work I been blessed you go to Congress and it's a rough, rough fight of their been any community surrounded by Christians and they help keep you on track in a minute. This place really is a it's a university, but it is in a sense, it's a church in the sense as the body of Christ and the community believers so it's a it's incredible place to be and we take it serious all of our faculty weave the faith and every lecture not just here and there, every, every day all day, and a doing a good way they care and are loving and they're not enough stuff in it down like Pharisees while they love the kids and rule since the kid growing up there up north United States to the preacher was looking at him you that kid is grown-up to kinda become the preacher in a way where God is giving you. This pulpit is a Dean of business and I was here last semester just with my daughter. You know. Enjoy appear in general and there is always major African leaders from all over the continent of Africa. And then I think the time before that you had this amazing economist like world-renowned economist and he got his CEO Summit coming that the high-level CEOs from all over the world are coming to this area, Lynchburg, Virginia. So tell us how that all works like how you're able to try to because this is a real plan for more folks will be expose the gospel potentially through business even then sometimes were door-to-door church yet will that's my calling. I'm a politician it's obvious I like talking. That's what I'm doing right now. I like bringing people together.

I like bring Christians together. I the beginning of the Lord's prayer as you build the kingdom of God on earth as it is in heaven. So that's the charge right after the forgiveness of sins.

Okay were all agreed on that as Christians, then what, then, you've got to build the kingdom of God. And so what. What better way to do that. We got preachers. We got it in abundance of fate. The weakness right now in the world is the government sector and the business sector of the woke right the Fortune 500 right now is is so woke in your everybody's reading on the ESG and all this stuff and so I just want to build up a community that that gives assurance and strengthen faithful brotherhood and sister to the CEOs they need a place with incoming to recharge with like-minded people and I a billionaire from Nigeria last year is not been to Harvard.

I'm in a standby never seen anything like this place.

The warmth I've been hugged.

Everyone treats me good from CEOs they're not arrogant they're not cocky. They all want to help us were all shared together as brothers and sisters in Christ. On like that. That's that made my year so I can do any of that. That's what I'm on the planet to do and so that's it, that's a blessing. Dr. David Bratt what encouragement and really every time around him is just as contagious losing of the gospel is low for economical solo. It's all a tool all means to leading people to Jesus because what it was a prodigy gain the whole world revolution her own soul. And you're trying to send people out or will discern what your challenger when right now. They may not have an MBA maybe to run a landscape business. Other maybe there is a bather stay-at-home mom with three businesses online selling jewelry.

Maybe there there there.

Someone is just working at the plant whose frustrated these surrounded by believers easier and Valleywood out and what your challenged people to live out for Christ wherever they are. Yet my chair.

The word of God right versus the word man and so the word of God is in the book and there's a lot of people making stuff up and so make sure you ground yourself in the book and there is a spiritual war going on and is a you you tried to pick up the Bible every single day, and you'll find somehow there's an excuse that pops up in your head and all sorts of things, and this and that kind of challenge and that's not out of nowhere right and so my challenge is a you pick that book up the Bible. Some Scripture lessons in the morning and afternoon sometime during the day you try to pick up that Bible. And if you find you're not doing it, then that's that that some speaking to you right. Some hold you back from that and that you figure that out because reading the Bible. Every great person who's lived in the Western tradition has known intellectually that it's the word of God and so that it all of our music in the West all the art in the West reflects that I got to hang all of the office so if there is no mystery to it intellectually, but personally, spiritually, that it's hard to hang in there and to